Sport Pilot Talk

A further inconsistency in the FARs: a Sport Pilot can change the oil (and other PM) on an SLSA he or she owns, but not on a certified LSA like a Cub, Champ, Luscomb, or T-craft. For those, the owner needs to be a Private Pilot or above. Where in the PP training do we teach the additional skills needed to chang oil in a Continental (which, by any objective measure, is simpler than changing oil in a Rotax)?

drseti wrote:

3Dreaming wrote:Good Doctor, unless you are reading something different than me the answer is NO. An applicant should know how the oil system works, but they are not required to know how to change oil or filters. However they should know that they can change oil and filters, and in the case of a sport pilots which aircraft they can perform preventive maintenance on.

I think you missed my cynical point, Tom. Of course there is no requirement that the applicant know how to change oil. The irony is that, after the Practical test, the newly minted Sport Pilot is empowered by the FARs to change oil, and do other preventive maintenance on a plane he or she owns. The previous day, the FARs forbade the same aircraft owner from doing so. So, obviously, there was something in the passing of the Practical test that magically endowed the applicant with the requisite skills, no?

I guess I should have looked more closely at the smiley. What I find odd is that a private pilot could legally perform preventive maintenance on a Lear jet owned by them, while a sport pilot can not change oil on a Piper Cub owned by them.

3Dreaming wrote:What I find odd is that a private pilot could legally perform preventive maintenance on a Lear jet owned by them, while a sport pilot can not change oil on a Piper Cub owned by them.

That's precisely why EAA makes the distinction between SLSA, ELSA, E-AB, and what they dubbed SPEA. (Yes, Tom, I know you don't like that term). From a pilot's perspective, an LSA is an LSA, as defined in FAR 1.1. But from a Maintenance perspective, unfortunately not all LSAs are created equal.

drseti wrote:

3Dreaming wrote:What I find odd is that a private pilot could legally perform preventive maintenance on a Lear jet owned by them, while a sport pilot can not change oil on a Piper Cub owned by them.

That's precisely why EAA makes the distinction between SLSA, ELSA, E-AB, and what they dubbed SPEA. (Yes, Tom, I know you don't like that term). From a pilot's perspective, an LSA is an LSA, as defined in FAR 1.1. But from a Maintenance perspective, unfortunately not all LSAs are created equal.

You are right I don't like those terms. All they did was create confusion, and they continue to do so to this day. In this case the way the FAA broke it down is much better than the EAA's over simplified way of trying to describe it. IMO their description was an injustice to the light sport community.

In my previous post I should have been more specific in that a private pilot can perform preventive maintenance on a aircraft owned by them that they can't even legally fly, while a sport pilot can not perform preventive maintenance on all the aircraft they can legally fly.

Good clarification, Tom.

roger lee wrote: ↑Sun Dec 24, 2017 9:01 am Dump the Tempest. The bypass pressure is too low. The Rotax is 18-22 psi. The anti drain back membrane isn't soft enough either and will allow drainage. The new filters are out and were within a couple of weeks. Just change the filter and keep flying. Stay away from Tempest and Champion. If you have an engine issue using these someone with the Rotax filter will get help. Someone with the off brand is totally on their own. These filters have about a $1 - $2 difference in price anymore and being cheap just isn't worth it.

Hi
I had my first oil change in a Tecnam P2008T - it has the 914 Rotax engine. The service center installed a Tempest oil filter. Should the Tempest oil filter still be avoided? What are the consequences if I leave it in till next oil change? Thanks

I can only tell you my experience. Before I became an LSRM I let an A&P do my oil change on my 912ULS. He used a Tempest filter - I knew nothing about it. Several flights and several weeks later, I was getting ready to fly and couldn't pull the prop through to burp the engine. I finally figured out that the engine was hydro-locked. I took out all lower plugs, and gobs of oil came running out of cylinder 2. Only Rotax Oil filters for me!

Changing the filter is very doable without having to change the oil.

Ergo1 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 15, 2021 10:15 pm

roger lee wrote: ↑Sun Dec 24, 2017 9:01 am Dump the Tempest. The bypass pressure is too low. The Rotax is 18-22 psi. The anti drain back membrane isn't soft enough either and will allow drainage. The new filters are out and were within a couple of weeks. Just change the filter and keep flying. Stay away from Tempest and Champion. If you have an engine issue using these someone with the Rotax filter will get help. Someone with the off brand is totally on their own. These filters have about a $1 - $2 difference in price anymore and being cheap just isn't worth it.

Hi
I had my first oil change in a Tecnam P2008T - it has the 914 Rotax engine. The service center installed a Tempest oil filter. Should the Tempest oil filter still be avoided? What are the consequences if I leave it in till next oil change? Thanks

This thread is 4 years old, not that that matters…But, did you read any of it? If you had… Tempest filter = Bad / ROTAX filter = GOOD

Yes I read the tread after getting my oil changed. I hoped that Tempest had changed the composition of their oil filters in the last four years. Guess not!

I just ordered Rotax Oil Filters.However after ordering curiosity got the best of me, I went to the Tempest Website and found the following information:

Tempest Filter Specs - 914/912 Engine
› Full can thickness of .019”
› Base plate thickness of .100”
› Burst pressure of 275 – 325 psi › Media content of 118 sq. in.
› Safety wire lock tab ring. VS

The Rotax filter compares with a burst of 240 – 270 psi, 104 sq. in. of media, no safety wire lock tab ring and no magnet.
PART NUMBER: AA825706
OIL FILTER, SPIN-ON ROTAX 825-701, 825-703 and 825-706.

Can anyone explain what this means relative to these two oil filters? Has Tempest gone the extra mile and improved their oil filter? Inquiring minds want to know!

Thank you

I am not sure of the current specifications on the current Rotax oil filter, but the ones you listed are old part numbers. The current part number is 825-016. The issue with the filters have never been in the specifications you listed, but rather the internal bypass pressure. The Tempest filter would bypass at a lower pressure, allowing contaminants to be released from the filter back into the engine. At least that is my understanding.

Edited; I see you got your information from the Tempest site. The Rotax filters they compared theirs to are at least two generations away form the current Rotax part number. I wonder why they have not updated their information??

3Dreaming is correct along with Roger and everyone else, ditch the Tempest and ONLY use the Rotax filter DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY for the Rotax engine.

This is the filter you want on your Rotax engine:

https://lockwood.aero/rotax-oil-filter- ... onger.html

ShawnM wrote: ↑Sun Jul 18, 2021 9:33 pm 3Dreaming is correct along with Roger and everyone else, ditch the Tempest and ONLY use the Rotax filter DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY for the Rotax engine.

This is the filter you want on your Rotax engine:

https://lockwood.aero/rotax-oil-filter- ... onger.html

It's a no brainer.

Wm.Ince wrote: ↑Mon Jul 19, 2021 11:14 am
It's a no brainer.

Bill, are you saying that folks who go for the cheapest filter have no brains?

I think mechanics tend to use the Tempest filter because they use Tempest on everything else. I prefer and use Champion over Tempest for my other airplane oil filters. Also the mechanics who do not normally work on Rotax engines probably don't order parts from Rotax distributors, and Aircraft Spruce only sells the Tempest filter for Rotax.